


All You Need Is Love

by Sakari



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: M/M, Time Travel Fix-It
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-24
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:34:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23311702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sakari/pseuds/Sakari
Summary: Just another Cloud gets sent back in time to change the course of history story.
Relationships: Sephiroth/Cloud Strife
Comments: 23
Kudos: 284





	1. Chapter 1

Sephiroth marched on, his boots crunching fresh snow and ice. He and his small platoon of men had set out from Icicle Inn at the break of dawn and walked for hours, yet the scenery seemed to stay the same. Monotonous white ice hills and snowy valleys.

He liked to play a little mental game of I Spy with himself during these long marches to keep his mind sharp and alert, but even that was quickly becoming dull. I Spy… a dark jaggedy rock. Better watch my footing around there. I Spy… fresh footprints of an animal in the snow. Good to know there is still wild life to be hunted in the area to give his men a break from ration bars frozen so solid they could chip a tooth. I Spy… another rock.

They had reached another peak of a hill they had been climbing for a good part of an hour. The platoon of men looked down at another wide stretch of white lands and groaned at the prospect of trekking for more hours on end.

"General, sir," came the hesitant voice of the lieutenant of this platoon. "Might be a good time to start looking for somewhere to start settling in for the night. At this time of year, nightfall comes early and it will be dark soon."

Sephiroth bit back his retort that there was still hours before nightfall, feeling the weight of fifteen hopeful pairs of eyes on his back. He often forgot that normal men tired much more quickly. That it was his abnormal nature that allowed him to walk on for much longer. "Agreed," he said. "Keep your eyes peeled for a suitable place to settle in for the night."

"Yes, sir!"

Sephiroth continued crunching through the icy snow again, blinking away the stray snowflake that landed atop his eyelash. I Spy… a ravine. A small trickle of fresh Icicle Spring water. He started down the hill toward the water to refill his water pouch. I Spy… another black rock, right in the middle of the small ravine and cutting off the path the water was trying to cut down the side of the hill. The rock was more of a small boulder that the water was pooling around, forming a small puddle. As Sephiroth neared he realized it was not a rock and in fact--

"Holy shit! A body!" one of the men exclaimed.

"We should fill up all our water packs upstream, sir," the lieutenant said. "This dead guy's probably contaminating all the water downstream from here, and we don't know when we'll come across fresh water again." At Sephiroth's nod, the lieutenant left to command the troops to unload the water packs tied to the unit's two chocobos.

Sephiroth approached the facedown body. It was unusual for anybody besides Shinra platoon sent on missions to be walking through the icy plains at this time of year. He recalled a successful mission completed in this area by a small squad two weeks, but didn't recall reading of any deaths. But if he had lost any men in his army, he would want to know about it. And it was also apparently army regulation to return the bodies of fallen soldiers to their families.

He rolled the body over. The first thing that occurred to him was how not-dead this body looked. He's seen a lot of corpses in his lifetime, often either glassy eyed or faces contorted in horror as they watched their ending unfold. This guy looked like he passed peacefully in a calm sleep. Maybe hypothermia is not a bad way to go. And then Sephiroth noticed the small white puffs warming the air around the guy's face. Oh. Guess this is a not-dead body.

Sephiroth knelt down to inspect the person, intrigued. His hair and eyebrows were matted in a thick layer of white snow, clothes completely soaked in ice cold water. And somehow not dead. Yet. "Lieutenant," he called, waving the man over. "Have this person loaded onto a chocobo."

"Yes sir?" the lieutenant hesitated and leaned closer to inspect the body. "Holy shit, he's not dead!"

With the water packs and limp body tied securely onto the chocobos, the group set off again. The excitement of rescuing a person seemed to have slightly cheered up the troops, providing a distraction to the monotonous and cold march. Sephiroth, however, remained focused as they walked on, and ultimately was the one that I Spied a jagged outcropping of a rock that ended up being an entrance to a deep cave.

The men quickly prepared the cave for the night. Sephiroth circled the perimeter, checking for safety but more importantly, tracking the animal footprints he had spotted earlier. It was perfect timing when he made it back to their cave with a family of dead rabbits in a sack. The men had already unload the timber and had just started warming around the fire. He noticed the the men had laid out the person they had found to be warmed up next to the fire. And also a dozen or so of frozen ration bars for defrosting. They cheered as he emptied the sack of game onto the floor and set about preparing the rabbits for a much heartier dinner.

Sephiroth found a place to sit against the cave wall and smiled, watching the men excitedly cook and exchange stories, somehow turning the boring day of marching through snow fields into stories of daring adventures. When it was time to turn in for the night, Sephiroth settled for a spot slightly closer to the dimming fire. The frozen body they found had slept the entire evening. The orange light of the fire danced across his features and had melted all of the snow. The young man's breaths still came in short puffs, and there were no signs of shivering to show the body was warming back up. Somehow, miraculously, he was found alive and Sephiroth wondered if he would live through the night. Hoping he wouldn't die on his watch, Sephiroth shrugged off his heavy leather jacket and draped it over the man's body, the length of it covering him from chin to toe.

When Sephiroth woke the was still dark out and the fire had died down. Dawn was probably going to break within the hour. His troops were still asleep, as was the man they found. Without the fire casting an orange hue on everything around, Sephiroth could now see with mako-enhanced vision that the melted snow revealed spikes of blond hair. None of the troops had recognized the man but Sephiroth knew the squad that was here two weeks ago were part of a different battalion they perhaps never crossed paths. A quick search had revealed no identification. The man carried nothing but a short boot knife. The edge was sharp but clean and unused. It was too nice to be a Shinra-issued knife so Sephiroth confiscated it. He wasn't going to let his men sleep in the same cave with an armed stranger. 

He could see the blond stranger looked more warmed up now, his breaths coming in long even breaths. Sephiroth slightly adjusted the coat where it had slid down and left one shoulder uncovered. The man was insanely not even dressed for the weather with arms bare and exposed. Sephiroth carefully walked over outstretched limbs of fifteen men to exit the cave. As he stood outside with bare arms and chest mostly exposed, he also realized how ridiculously underdressed for the weather he must look. It was a cold and windy day, and it felt like a snow storm was coming.

By the time Sephiroth returned with another sack of game his hair was covered with snow and the wind was picking up.

A new fire was started and they sat around a large pot of miscellaneous meat soup cooking. "Sir, should we plan to depart at oh eight hundred hours?" the platoon lieutenant asked. Sephiroth knew the sound of howling winds and few gusts of snow that blew into the cave had the men worried. He sighed. Half of them would probably end up lost and dead if they tried to navigate through this snow storm.

"No let's… wait out the storm. Reassess tomorrow morning." The men looked uneasy and he tried for a smile. "We managed to complete our mission early so we are making good time. You good men deserve a well earned break." His smile must be out of practice and the words must have seemed forced as they still looked uneasy, but that was the extent of his social graces. Sephiroth picked up his sword and went to sit near the mouth of the cave where he spent most of the day cleaning and polishing the metal to an almost-new shine.

In the evening he joined the men by the fire to finish off the rest of the stew. He looked at the blond man still slumbering near the fire, and just as he was wondering if he would ever wake up, he saw the quick fluttering of eyelashes. It was very quick but the glow of mako he saw was unmistakable. Blond eyebrows drew together as if pained before the eyes tried to open again. It took a few tries for the eyes to focus, before blue glowing eyes found Sephiroth's stare. And then those eyes looked around at the ruckus around him by the fire. The men were talking and laughing loudly–about boobs?–making Sephiroth grimace at the first unprofessional impression his men must be making on the stranger. Sephiroth cleared his throat loudly, immediately quieting all the men and drawing all eyes to him. Including the stranger's.

"You're awake." He commented. Lamely. Gaia, was he always this socially lame? Nonetheless, he pushed on. "You've been asleep for over a full day, at least. Why were you wandering around Icicle in this weather?"

"I don't know. I… don't remember." His voice was slightly gravelly from sleep, but the timbre was clear. He moved slowly to sit up. Sephiroth's heavy coat fell to pool up in his lap.

"What's your name?"

"Cloud."

"You were exposed to mako. But you don't seem to exhibit the symptoms of mako poisoning." When Cloud didn't offer an explanation on his non-question, he pressed, "How were you exposed to mako? Was it accidental? Drugs?"

"No." The stranger paused, searching for words. "It was… an experiment. For science. And I don't want to talk about it."

It was Sephiroth's turn to search for words. Empathy was a rare emotion he experienced, mostly unable to relate to other men, but what Cloud was saying and what his eyes were telling him–not just the glowing of mako but the fearful, haunted look–assured him that was the truth. "Did you escape? Is that how you ended up lost in Icicle?"

Cloud shook his head. "No, that was a long time ago. I don't remember how I got here…"

"I see. I understand now that you likely survived in this climate due to the mako that runs in your veins. I'm Sephiroth."

Cloud didn't respond. Of course he knew Sephiroth.

"I'm Fergus!" chimed in one of the officers sitting next to Cloud. "You sure had us in a shock. Thought you were dead!" He laughed loudly and patted Cloud heavily on the shoulder.

Sephiroth saw Cloud wince, not in pain but with another feeling that Sephiroth was quite empathetic to. Sephiroth withdrew from the conversation that was quickly becoming quite lively again and hoped his men did not descend into the topic of boobs again.

Cloud somehow found himself to be the centre of conversation. Where another person might be flattered with the attention and honest curiosity from others, he felt bewildered and violated by the interrogation about his person. Where is he from, is he married, and if he liked them big or perky? His face grew warm from Fergus and Lance's graphic descriptions of their preferences. His eyes darted around from face-to-face, feeling suffocated. He looked to Sephiroth who seemed to watch on with a twinkle of mirth in his eye. What was so amusing?

And Cloud remembered. Of course he knew Sephiroth. Of course he remembered how he got here. He remembered the sound of leather flapping in the wind as Sephiroth descended from the sky, the gleam of the blade that struck Aeris, and the feeling of damp sticky blood on that pink dress of hers. He remembered carrying her into the magic waters of the temple of the ancients where the life energy of the planet swirled around him and drew him under the surface. And as he was drowning, holding the corpse of a person he loved, his close friend, that her spirit energy sent him back to this moment. They said to change the course of history, and he asked how.

Just be yourself, the voices said. As Cloud struggled for breath and his vision grew dark, he remembered thinking that the planet sounded like a shitty gay best friend. 


	2. Chapter 2

One by one the troops headed to their bed rolls for sleep until Cloud was left alone by the fire. Sephiroth allowed Cloud a few minutes of silent reprieve before coming forward to join him.

"Our group just departed Icicle Village and we have mission commands in Rocket Town and North Corel before returning to Midgar. I cannot reveal the details of our missions, but depending on where you are going, you could travel with us part of the way for your safety." When Cloud didn't respond, Sephiroth asked, "So where is it that you're going?"

"I don't know," Cloud replied. "I guess I'll travel with you to Rocket Town for now."

"Do you have acquaintances there?"

Cloud thought about Cid and Shera. "No."

Sephiroth looked at him across the top of the flickering flames. Cloud's downcast eyes tinted the tops of his cheekbones blue, the glowing eyes a telltale sign of his mako enhancement. Sephiroth knew that the delicate features could be deceptive, that lithe arms could be mako-enhanced to lift thousands of times what they appear to be able to – like an ant carrying many times its body weight. He himself had seen hundreds of thousands of battles but not a single scar marred his skin. He reminded himself that he needed to keep a vigilant eye on this mako-enhanced stranger, that there was no telling what someone like this was capable of. He could possibly single-handedly wipe out his entire platoon of men if Sephiroth didn't keep a watchful eye on him.

That's what he told himself, anyway, when he chose to lie down in a spot that night that would allow him a full view of Cloud. They said their good nights and Cloud went to sleep with the borrowed leather coat pulled to his chin. To maintain focus and keep watch over the potentially dangerous person, Sephiroth resorted to his mental game again.

I Spy… a tarnished silver earring. Sephiroth couldn't make out the details from this distance but could tell from the way the light bounced off its many facets that there was an intricate design. He made a mental note to take a closer look later. I Spy… a wayward piece of blond hair seeming to defy gravity. I Spy… a mouth downturned in a permanent frown. I Spy… eyebrows set in a determined, almost angry, angle, the harsh lines softened by their light colour that almost disappeared against light skin. The closed eyes were hidden behind a fan of short lashes, several shades darker than the blond hair that framed the face. Lines under the eyes betrayed tension even as the man slept.

Sephiroth may have memorized every detail of that sleeping face by the time morning came. The sound of troops shuffling around roused Cloud from his sleep and Sephiroth was caught staring when the blond woke. Sephiroth was treated to a strange, questioning look from Cloud, but Sephiroth didn't care. He kept night watch for the safety of his troops.

"General, sir," Lieutenant Maxwell approached as both Sephiroth and Cloud sat up. "Weather conditions unfortunately have not improved. What are your commands?"

Sephiroth loathed the thought of being delayed another day, but they were still ahead of schedule and had plenty of time before the meeting he was due to attend in Rocket Town. And somehow, being cooped up in this small cave doesn't seem as bad as it did before. "We will stay another day and reassess tomorrow morning. Today, I will accompany a small group of men back to the ravine to replenish our water supplies. Round up three to four men that are best suited for these conditions."

"Yes, sir." The lieutenant left to carry out the orders.

"I wouldn't mind a trip out," Cloud volunteered. "I can help refill water."

Sephiroth agreed for Cloud to join them. He wanted to keep an eye on the new addition to their group at all times anyway.

The lieutenant led three of the troops, two yellow chocobos, and one blond haired stranger from the cave. Sephiroth trailed along, musing the similarities between the back of Cloud's messy hair and the tufts of feathers springing up from the top of the chocobos. The wind was harsh, blowing snow from the sky and snow from the grounds at them. Several times Lieutenant Maxwell consulted his compass, but Cloud trudged on, sure of his direction. The men ahead of Sephiroth were making conversation with Cloud – Sephiroth could hear the shouting of voices, but by the time the sound reached him, the words had been gobbled up by the wind.

The area by the ravine was sheltered from the harshest of winds by the surrounding hills, but today there was no trickle of water. The troops groaned, looking around hopelessly for any water that was still flowing, but somewhere upstream, a fresh pack of snow must have cut off the water supply somewhere. "Sir, what do we do?" Lieutenant Maxwell shouted over the wind as Sephiroth caught up to the group.

Cloud chimed in. "If it's just water you needed, can't we just melt some of the snow over the fire?" At the silence of the men, he continued, trailing off with uncertainty at the dumbfounded looks staring back at him. "Over the fire… in a pot?..."

It was Fergus who broke the group's silence. "For fuck's sake, are you kidding me?! Why didn't you say something earlier? You mean we froze our balls off out here for nothing?" Fergus shouted loudly into the winds.

Lieutenant Maxwell laughed, clapping Cloud on the shoulder. "Damn mountain boy's been holding out his secrets on us," he twanged in his best imitation of a country accent, drawing a chuckle from Cloud. His soft laugh was in the same clear timbre of his voice, easily picked up by Sephiroth's ear.

"Didn't realise I was surrounded by a group of useless city boys," Cloud joked back in what must have been his natural accent. Where was that from? Mideel? No, it sounded more western continental. The sound was musical and very different from the harsh twanging the lieutenant tried to impersonate. It was very different than Cloud's usual imitation of the standard Midgar speech.

Perhaps Sephiroth was distracted because it happened all too fast that he didn't even react until the man's cry pierced the air. A monstrous bird of prey dove down from the skies, following the sound of voices to a rare carnivorous meal in these climates. It's talons plucked a man up into the sky. What was his name again? Lance? No, Lance was still here, mouth gaping in horror up at the sky helplessly as he watched his comrade be lifted higher and higher away. Luke? Lee?

"LEO!" shouted Lieutenant Maxwell firing his rifle up at the sky in futile. The monster had rose too far away for bullets to reach it. The group watched helplessly as the monster rose to meet an entire flock of its friends, sharing the fresh meal. The large carnivorous birds ripped, pecked, and tore at the flesh until only clothing was left. They dropped the bloodied armour and inedible equipment back to the earth where pieces scattered around the snow.

They circled the skies, still not satisfied. Sephiroth drew his sword. "Men, prepare for battle. Back to back and keep it tight."

The three remaining men stood back to back, forming a tight triangle with guns at the ready. Sephiroth held his sword at the ready. A bird dove, eyes picking up what seemed like the smallest and easiest target. Cloud dove away in the last moment, out of reach of its deadly beak and talons. The troops laid gunfire and Sephiroth made a wide slash with his blade. The bird struggled in death, large wings kicking up a flurry of blinding snow as it tried to propel itself back into the air. In the distraction, another opportunistic beast swooped down and plucked up a squawking yellow chocobo. Yellow feathers floated down with the snow, along with bits of rope and canvas bag that had been secured to the bird. Sephiroth counted the squabbling monsters bickering for their fair share of meat. One down, four more to go.

Two more creatures dove down. Somewhere in the fray, Cloud had picked up Leo's dropped rifle and landed a few accurate shots that brought one bird down for good. Sephiroth realized his slip up in allowing this stranger to weaponize, but in this moment, he could use someone here that was a good shot. Unlike the other three men that sprayed bullets that even when they made contact, hit nothing critical. The bird managed to wrap his talons around another man–actually Lance this time–and take off. Sephiroth growled with anger. The bird was right there, five inches from Lieutenant Maxwell and Corporal Fergus' faces. How could they possibly be so incompetent to miss a shot from that distance? The bird was out of his blade's reach, but not a well aimed Firaga spell. The bird fell to the ground, landing in a crispy, smoking pile. Corporal Lance unfortunately met the same fate.

Cloud dashed over to join Fergus and Maxwell, assuming the now vacant third spot. He pressed his back against their backs and lifted his rifle at the ready, eyes turned unblinkingly to the sky even as snowflakes fell upon his face. Sephiroth did the same. The remaining two birds flew down, taking a divide-and-conquer strategy. Sephiroth held his sword at the ready, and with one fatal slash, split the bird diving at him in half, its body parts crashing down around him.

He heard a cry of surprise and looked up just in time to see Cloud kneeling over into the snow, Fergus's boot kicking him behind the legs. The rifle spilled out of his hands as Cloud reached out to catch himself in the snow. The last bird, seeing opportunity, went for the defenseless blond as Fergus took off in the other direction to save his own life, a bewildered Maxwell spraying bullets at the flurry of wings.

But the blond was not defenseless. The bird, with beak wide open to chomp down on the man was surprised as a fist came up to meet its mouth. The momentum of flight carried the bird further down, and the fist drove straight into its mouth and out the other side of its skull. The monster was suspended in mid flight, as if time had paused, before the creature's body recognized it was dead and fell on top of Cloud in a slump. Cloud wrenched his bloodied arm and fist from the carcass, the tissue on his knuckles and along his forearm shredded by beak and fragments of skull bone. He lay there panting as the snow around him turned pink with a mixture of human and monster blood.

Maxwell rushed over and shoved the dead monster away. "Holy shit, man, are you alright?"

Cloud, helped up by Maxwell, quickly rounded on Fergus with a scowl on his face. "What the hell was that?" he demanded, hands balled into fists. One was still dripping blood as the mako in his blood worked quickly to knit the flesh back together.

"What's going on?" Maxwell asked, confused. 

Fergus, emboldened by the realization that Maxwell hadn't seen anything was about to retaliate when Sephiroth interjected before he could speak. "That, corporal, should be punishable by death."

Sephiroth approached and Fergus cowered. "You disgrace your fallen comrades here today with your cowardly behaviour. What do you have to say for yourself?"

Fergus stammered and tried to justify. "He… We… Our platoon… we were going to all die. He's just a… a nobody! He would have been dead already if we hadn't found him!"

Realization about what happened finally dawned on Maxwell. "Corporal! How could you!" He angrily shook his rifle. "Sir," he gritted out to Sephiroth, "give me your orders. I should… take responsibility for my men."

"If it were up to me, he would be dead by now." Sephiroth sighed. "Unfortunately, it is not up to me. Secure him and escort him to Rocket Town. He'll be put on an airship to Midgar to stand in front of a panel." Sephiroth looked to Cloud who was still shaking with anger. "Unless… if you want him dead? I can turn a blind eye if you wish to take matters into your own hands."

Cloud huffed, shoulders deflating. "...No, I don't want him dead."

"Okay. Good."

"But…" Sephiroth raised an eyebrow as Cloud stalked slowly towards Fergus. "I think he at least deserves this!" Sephiroth nearly let out a burst of surprised laughter as Cloud slapped Fergus right across the face.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: sexy stuffs at the end of the chapter.

The group trekked back to the cave with Cloud in an angry lead, having no difficulty navigating through the white plains of snow, followed by a chocobo quickly trotting after him. Fergus walked with one red heated cheek and Maxwell's rifle pointed at his back. Sephiroth took the rear, watching the tops of yellow heads bobbing several yards ahead of him.

The men in the cave were solemn as they watched the group return in shrunken numbers. While the lieutenant explained the situation to the platoon, Cloud stalked outside with the cooking pot in hand. Sephiroth followed, and watched the blond stomp around and throw fresh snow into the large pot. "You seem to still be angry."

"Yeah, no shit, Sherlock." Sephiroth didn't understand the reference but even he had enough social aptitude not to ask now. "What a piece of shit. Can't believe I was so naive to trust a bunch of strangers to watch my back."

"Well, while I still haven't concluded if you're a dangerous threat to us or not," said Sephiroth candidly, "I think you should have this back." Sephiroth pulled out the knife he had taken from Cloud's unconscious form from his belt. "I'd like to restore your sense of security around my poorly disciplined men," he said as a form of apology. "Or you could possibly slit that piece of shit's throat in the night."

Cloud tucked the knife back into the sheath in his boot. He scoffed, "That's not my style," and returned to channelling his anger into furiously shovelling snow.

"What is your style?" Sephiroth asked.

"A challenge. A fight. An honourable spar," said Cloud. "But there would be nothing honourable in me crushing that pathetic coward."

"So you're taking it out on the snow instead?" Sephiroth asked, watching as Cloud packed the pot so full the metal was creaking in protest. "Why don't you take it out on me instead? I should take responsibility for not better training my men. I could take Fergus' place in an honourable spar."

Cloud turned to him, eyebrow quirked in a challenge. Somehow the blond's face and body tight with anger was stirring up a sense of excitement in Sephiroth's gut. He loved a good fight and wondered if Cloud would give it to him. He was pleased when Cloud replied with a slow, drawn out word, "Okay."

"But what will you fight with? We should find you a suitable weapon."

It was Sephiroth's turn to raise an eyebrow when Cloud leaned over to draw the short knife back out of his boot. "Well come on, then," Cloud said. "Draw your sword!"

Sephiroth slowly obeyed. He didn't have the chance to ask any further questions as the blond was quickly dashing toward him, short knife in hand. As soon as Cloud entered his striking zone, Sephiroth gave a lazy slash of his long sword, testing the waters. He was more than pleased when Cloud hopped, agile, onto the broad of his masamune, and propelled himself into a somersault above his head. As Cloud passed over Sephiroth's head, he cut savagely with the sharp blade of his knife. Sephiroth felt a rush when he realized Cloud wasn't pulling any stops and had been going right for his jugular. This was going to be fun. Sephiroth managed to lean out of the way, the blade leaving a deep scratch on his shoulder guard instead. Sephiroth turned slowly to face Cloud again, who had landed gracefully on his feet.

This time, Sephiroth rushed forward, slicing and slashing, but all he cut was air as the nimble little blond nymph ducked and dodged all his attacks. Sephiroth advanced, backing Cloud closer and closer toward a high snow bank. Finally, Cloud's back was pressed back against the snowy wall and there was nowhere further to retreat, and Sephiroth went in for the final attack. He stabbed, not aiming to kill, but at the empty spot just next to Cloud ear to signal his victory – that he clearly won and only spared his opponent's life for it was a spar. But by the time his sword pierced the snow, Cloud was no longer in front of him. Cloud had dropped to the icy ground and was sliding between Sephiroth's legs, taking advantage of the opening in Sephiroth's form.

Sephiroth thought he saw a smirk on Cloud's face as he glided through the opening between Sephiorth's feet. Cloud struck the back of his leg as he passed, bringing Sephiroth to one knee. Sephiroth grunted and quickly pivoted on his knees, blocking the slash of the knife that followed with his silver gauntlet. With his other hand he grabbed Cloud's wrist and disarmed him with a quick twist of his hand. Cloud cried out in pain, dropping the knife, and Sephiroth grinned, feeling he was nearing victory.

"Cloud," he purred. "Say you yield. Say you've lost."

Cloud scoffed, and with his other hand threw a handful of icy snow into Sephiroth's eyes. Sephiroth pulled away, blinded temporarily. And then he froze at the feeling of a cold blade on his throat. He blinked away the melting snow until his vision returned and was treated to the view of Cloud's blue eyes twinkling happily over his victory. "Cloud…" he drawled. "I thought you said you fought honourably."

Cloud smiled. "What is it that they say? 'All's fair in love and war'," he quoted with a jokingly pompous air. The cold edge under Sephiroth's chin disappeared and Cloud dropped the knife back into his boot.

In a decidedly better mood, Cloud retrieved his pot of snow and sauntered off toward the cave. Sephiroth followed. "You know, now that I've seen what you can do with such a small blade, I'm regretting my decision to trust you with it."

"I promise I won't slit any throats in the night," came Cloud's playful reply.

"Uh huh. Well, I'm going to be watching you, so don't try anything funny," Sephiroth warned.

Cloud reached the mouth of the cave and looked over his shoulder at Sephiroth. "Not sure you could stop me even if you tried," Cloud teased. Even Cloud's dull tarnished earring seemed to twinkle in mirth at him. Sephiroth scowled at the decorative metal wolf pinned on Cloud's ear.

  
  


By the following day the snow storm had finally passed so the group set out. Sephiroth was starting to feel sleep deprived, having spent another night watching Cloud like a hawk. The man was decidedly more dangerous than he initially surmised.

Sephiroth watched as Cloud stripped down to his underwear last night, placing his clothes and boots over the fire to dry. Unclothed, losing the bulk of his light armour, he looked even more deceptively harmless. Sephiroth watched closely as the nearly naked form slid under the borrowed coat, light skin disappearing under black leather.

Cloud, settling in for sleep, looked over to him and Sephiroth could almost read his mind as the blue eyes danced with humour again, mocking him over his loss. Sephiroth scowled back, and set his mind to imagining the many ways he could break that little body, and smash in the small face with delicate features that very proportionately matched that body.

In the morning, Sephiroth finally had his coat returned to him. He pulled on the still-warm leather warmed by Cloud's skin, and buffed out the scratches Cloud's knife left on his silver armour. Looking every part the General of Shinra Army, he set out with the troops in tow.

The platoon plowed on, not stopping for lunch or any break for hours. The general seemed to not be in the best of moods, and Lieutenant Maxwell valued his life and career so he kept silent and pushed his troops on. In the late afternoon they finally reached the continental shore where air ships could be seen docked.

"Sir, the next air ship departing for the western continent is in one hour. From there, we should be able to catch transport to Rocket Town and arrive by nineteen hundred hours," Lieutenant Maxwell reported, having returned from checking the flight schedule.

"Very well. We will reassemble here in forty five minutes to prepare for departure. Dismissed."

The platoon of men saluted and dissipated quickly, surely to look for food, rest, or a toilet.

"Not you, Cloud," Sephiroth said. "I promised to keep an eye on you to make sure you're not up to anything suspicious."

Cloud shrugged, continuing to walk away. "You're welcome to escort me to the toilet. I've got to take a leak."

All of the men in front of a urinal stood tersely when Sephiroth entered with Cloud. It was uncomfortable having your dick out anywhere near a bladed weapon, not to mention that bladed weapon was carried by the Silver Demon of Wutai. Some experienced performance anxiety, no longer able to urinate with Sephiroth standing behind them, and left quickly, freeing up a urinal for Cloud.

Cloud glanced up at a mirror and caught Sephiroth staring. "Do you mind?" he asked pointedly but Sephiroth stubbornly kept his watch.

"Geez…" Cloud grumbled but went anyway. Sephiroth could tell when he finished when a shiver ran up Cloud's back. It was oddly comforting to know that all men, mako-enhanced or not, seemed to share the same human quirk of the pee shiver. Sephiroth experienced it too, and it made him feel more human.

"Should we look to grab a bite next?" Cloud asked as he washed and dried his hands.

"There is food on the air ship." Sephiroth planned to eat on board but Cloud shook his head vehemently.

"Gods no. I need to eat and digest before we board the ship. I get air sick," he explained, surprising Sephiroth. Cloud looked more pale than usual at the thought. "And I get sea sick. And car sick."

"My oh, my. Is our infallible warrior that fights dishonourably not so infallible after all?" Sephiroth gloated, feeling childishly gleeful at the prospect of watching Cloud succumb to air sickness. Out of the many ways he fantasised about defeating Cloud as he lied awake last night, this was not one that crossed his mind. He was looking forward to it.

Cloud rolled his eyes and led them towards the nearest food vendors. Unfortunately, none of the cuisine of the Icicle region seemed to agree with Cloud's palate, and they eventually found themselves back at the meeting point. Cloud drank some of the water he melted from snow and petted their one remaining chocobo while they waited for the rest of the platoon to reconvene.

Almost as soon as the air ship took off, Cloud turned sweaty and pale. The restaurant wait staff on the air ship that brought Sephiroth his meal looked questioningly at his non-dining companion, and then rushed to get a bucket when Cloud retched. Cloud spent the rest of the flight vomiting water and then air from his empty stomach into the bin, and Sephiroth didn't have nearly as much fun as he thought he would, watching the blond suffer.

"Anything I can do to help?" he asked.

Cloud shook his head, spitting into the bucket. "Not unless you want to take that sword and put me out of my misery for good," Cloud joked, but the comedic effect was ruined by the sweat rolling down his face, and a bit of spittle stuck to his lower lip.

Sephiroth sighed and all of the sudden, felt quite dishonourable for wishing this fate on his blond haired companion.

Thankful it was a quick flight across the Corel Sea, Sephiroth helped Cloud disembark and was glad to see Cloud return to his normal self shortly after landing.

"Sir!" Lieutenant Maxwell reported to Sephiroth while the platoon worked to unload their gear from the air ship. "I can radio order for car transport to Rocket Town. The cars should arrive by seventeen hundred hours." Sephiroth glanced over to Cloud who was just regaining colour to his complexion and was loathe to subject him to another two hours in a car.

"It looks like we are still a day ahead of schedule. Let's stay here for the night and set out for Rocket Town tomorrow."

"Sir?" Lieutenant Maxwell was confused. Sephiroth was not the kind of man to travel at a leisurely pace. He preferred everything to be carried out quickly and efficiently, with as little dilly dallying as possible.

"I'm not looking forward to seeing that asshole Heidegger," Sephiroth explained. "Let's delay here one more day."

They checked into a nearby inn and dined in for supper. Dinner was a loud, boisterous affair. The men were glad to finally escape the cold and drank in large quantities to mourn their fallen comrades. Cloud also ate ravenously, finding the hearty food served on the western continent a lot more suitable to his tastes. Cloud drank and laughed and ate plenty of skewered meat with the men before they all retired to the room reserved for them.

It was an inn catered to individual travellers making a pit stop near the coastal shore before continuing on their travels, not a hotel set up as single rooms for business travellers. Rather, it had large, hostel-style rooms with a dozen beds lining the walls. The men ran to the beds, racing not to be the one left with the bed next to the general. When all the beds but the one next to Sephiroth were occupied, the few remaining troops preferred to unpack their bed rolls and sleep on the floor.

Cloud shrugged and clambered into that bed, clearly unbothered by Sephiroth's presence. It mildly irritated Sephiroth to know that his intimidating reputation didn't seem to affect Cloud. Probably because Cloud thought he could take him in a fight. Sephiroth scowled. It was only one spar and Sephiroth wasn't really trying.

Cloud, like the rest of the men, fell quickly into a deep slumber, taking advantage of a night being pillowed by cotton and down feathers rather than rocks and pebbles.

Sephiroth, at first, tried to stay awake and alert to keep watch. I Spy… a haughty asshole who thinks he could actually beat me in a fight. I Spy… stupid hair that is as untamed and unruly as its wearer, who cheats when he fights. But eventually, Sephiroth, worn down from staying up too many nights in a row, also succumbed to pillowy darkness.

His mind raced wildly in his sleep, cutting and splicing random memories and images from the past days. Taking scenes from one moment and putting them nonsensically in entirely different contexts. Voices rang in his mind.

_ 'The dead body's probably contaminating all the water downstream,' Maxwell said. _

_ Leo and Lance's corpses lay in the ravine, colouring the water and snow pink. _

_ 'Can't we melt snow for water?' The sound of clear laughter ringing through the air didn't match the lips downturned in a permanent pout. _

_ 'Come on, useless city boy,' came the taunt in a unique melodic accent. It was Nibel, Sephiroth suddenly realized. _

_ Blue eyes twinkled joyfully that he pieced it together. Pale skin was covered by the length of a black leather coat. And then Sephiroth was wearing the leather coat, and the length of his body was covering Cloud's. _

_ A shiver ran down Cloud's body. It was so human.  _

_ 'Come on then, draw your sword!' Cloud's eyes were intense and it excited him. Heat pooled in his groin. Sephiroth slowly obeyed, pulling down his zipper, holding his hot heavy member in his hand. _

_ How did he end up here? Kicked down and bent on one knee. With Cloud behind him. He could feel the heat from Cloud's skin lingering on his leather coat. _

_ 'Cloud, say you yield.' _

_ Sweat rolled down Cloud's face. The face that held all those beautiful, delicate features. Looks are deceiving, Sephiroth reminded himself. Cloud spat on Sephiroth's dick, lubing him up. Sephiroth wiped the spittle from the bottom of Cloud's full lip. _

_ Cloud was laughing and eating skewered meat. Cloud yelped in pain, dropping his knife in the snow. Cloud was skewered on Sephiroth's meat– _

Sephiroth's eyes flew open. What the fuck? His heart raced and he stared wide-eyed at the face from his nightmares in the bed next to him. He drew in a few long, steady breaths and willed his racing mind to still. Cloud broke the silence of the room with a moan and Sephiroth's heart was sent back to the races. For a crazy moment Sephiroth wondered if Cloud was dreaming about him too, and searched the sleeping face for signs. But Cloud's face was contorted in the true throes of a nightmare. "Stop… please… don't–" Cloud turned over and continued his fitful sleep.

Sephiroth felt crazy. Disgusting. Dishonourable for having these lewd thoughts. Maybe insanity had come about because he was so sleep deprived.

He threw the blankets off and headed to the showers, seeking privacy. Under the loud cascade of water, he stroked himself quickly to completion, willing his mind to be blank, willing it to be filled with big boobs, with perky boobs, with anything else,  _ please _ , but when he reached climax and came, gasping silently, his mind was just filled with dirty images of Cloud.

  
  



	4. Chapter 4

The light of dawn was only just starting to peek through the curtains when Sephiroth returned to the room. It looked like Cloud had finally managed to chase away the nightmares and resumed his peaceful slumber. Maxwell, he noticed, was sleeping on one of the bed rolls, one arm handcuffed to Fergus sleeping next to him on the floor. Sephiroth nodded in silent approval.

Not knowing what to do with himself, Sephiroth seated himself on his bed and flipped open his PHS. He was in the middle of drafting up a short report on the two fallen soldiers when he was interrupted by an incoming call. From Angeal.

"Are you ok? Do you need back up?" Angeal asked as soon as the call connected.

Sephiroth slipped out of the room and closed the door behind him quietly. "Hello? Sephiroth?" Angeal was saying, worried and impatient.

"...Yes? I'm here and I'm fine," Sephiroth finally replied.

"And where is here? Where are you? I saw the report that your mission was completed days ago, and it doesn't take that long to travel to Rocket from Icicle." All the upper echelon were due to meet in Rocket Town today, and Angeal must have just arrived, expecting to find Sephiroth. 

"I'm fine," Sephiroth repeated firmly. "I'll be there before the cameras start rolling."

"You don't sound fine," Angeal said, honing in on Sephiroth's terse voice and the suspicious lack of details.

Sephiroth heard Genesis in the background. "Seph, just tell Papa Bear what's got your knickers in a knot so I can continue reading in peaceful silence."

Sephiroth sighed. "I… I'm fine. We were on our way from Icicle. I lost two men."

Genesis could be heard sighing in exasperation. "You're actually upset over a couple of dead men? Happens all the time and they signed up for it."

Angeal took a gentler approach. "I'm sorry to hear that Sephiroth. They must have been fine, upstanding soldiers."

Sephiroth recalled their pathetic aim of madly spraying artillery and their conversational vocabulary that seemed to only consist of boobs. "...Not particularly."

"Oh." Angeal quieted, waiting for Sephiroth to elaborate.

Sephiroth huffed, made uncomfortable by the prying silence. "And there was a snow storm. The pathetic infantrymen couldn't safely continue, so we were cooped up in a cave for days."

"Your troops are stuck in a cave? I know how you feel about asking for help but… Let me radio for a transport request. You don't need to lose anymore men trying to get here."

"No, we're not in the cave anymore. We stayed overnight at an inn just north of Corel."

"Just north of Corel? But… you're nearly here! Why haven't you just come straight here?" Angeal pressed, worried and eager to see his friend.

"Well… we were going to, but… one of the guys got air sick…" Sephiroth said lamely, recognizing how ridiculous this was coming across. "I didn't know how he'd fare with another two hour car ride to Rocket."

"Wow!" interjected Genesis sarcastically in the background again. "That is just so incredibly nice and thoughtful of you, Seph. Now tell us who this loser is so we can eject his incompetent ass from the army."

"Gen," Angeal chided. "Some of us actually care about the wellbeing of our soldiers."

Genesis scoffed, "Two men die and suddenly Sephiroth's turned into a saint? I doubt he even remembers the names of those dead soldiers." Of course Genesis knew him all too well. In the report he was just in the midst of drafting, he had left the names blank for the lieutenant to fill in.

Genesis must have plucked the phone from Angeal's hand because his abrasive voice suddenly became much clearer. "Seph, just tell Papa Bear what's actually going on so Mama Bear can go back to his reading, or I swear to Gaia, it is not going to be a happy Mama Bear you're going to find at RT Base today."

"Well, this…" Sephiroth cleared his throat "...individual," he chose to say carefully, "is civilian. Not infantry."

"Go on…" Genesis prompted. Sephiroth could tell they were both listening with keen interest now. They could sense when they'd finally cut through Sephiroth's layers of bullshit and were getting close to the core of the matter. 

"This civilian was found frozen in the snow outside of Icicle Village. And I gained the knowledge that this individual developed the ability to survive the harsh climate due to being the unwilling subject of a mako science experiment."

"..." Angeal was at a loss for words.

After a pause, Genesis shouted, "What! Why couldn't you have started with that juicy tidbit? Let me get this straight… you're late getting to Rocket Town because you stumbled upon another you–another us–and you haven't made your way here yet because they got air sick. What kind of mako enhanced person gets motion sickness!" he guffawed in disbelief.

"I don't know!" said Sephiroth, cutting Genesis' rant off. "I don't know why but for some inexplicable reason I just wanted to postpone his torture of car sickness to another day!"

Genesis chose a poorly timed moment during Sephiroth's emotionally charged state to tease. "Oh it's a he. Is he hot?!"

"–Gen!" Angeal admonished, but the damage was done. Genesis hit a little too close to home and Sephiroth was no longer interested in continuing this conversation. Genesis was still cackling away with laughter when Sephiroth snapped his PHS shut. He ignored all subsequent redials from Angeal.

Sephiroth stalked back angrily into the room and threw the door open. He took one look at the decidedly not hot blond who was sat up on his bed rubbing sleep from his eyes, sporting a borrowed t-shirt made of a flimsy material that closely contoured his shoulders and exposed just a hint of well defined collarbones–Sephiroth tore his eyes away to glower at everyone else in the room. The troops who were only now waking up to the morning sun took one look at their furious commander and scrambled up to quickly get ready.

Lieutenant Maxwell rushed over, awkwardly dragging along Fergus who was still handcuffed to his arm. "Yes, sir! Sorry, sir! Ready for your commands, Sir!" 

"Get packing! Immediately!" he barked. "I want to be out the doors at oh six hundred hours, sharp!"

"Yes, sir?" Maxwell asked, checking the time and realizing that was only in seven minutes' time. At Sephiroth's fiery look he squawked another "Yes, Sir!" and took off to get the platoon packed and ready to go in record time.

It was apparent some of the men had skipped brushing their teeth entirely that morning. Sephiroth could smell it in the stale confines of the transport truck with seven other infantrymen. The rest of the platoon was in a second transport truck following behind. Sephiroth purposely chose not to be the same transport truck Cloud was riding in. He told himself he didn't want to be stuck smelling vomit for two hours. He also didn't know if he could stand the sight of Cloud in pain again for that extended period of time.

When they arrived at Rocket Town he found himself watching intently as the trucks unloaded and a couple of men helpfully dragged Cloud out of the vehicle. Maxwell slapped Cloud genially on the shoulder. "Rough trip, mate," he said with a few parting pats. Cloud grimaced but looked grateful to have both feet on solid ground again. He was caught staring by his two friends when they found him in the car park.

Angeal and Genesis both followed his gaze and easily spotted the pale man with the telltale mako eyes. Neither of them commented, but Sephiroth could tell from Genesis's shit-eating grin what they must be thinking. And that they might guess his secret.

Sephiroth turned sharply away and marched off, black leather coat whirling behind him. His troops clambered clumsily after him, taking more than a few moments to find their stride in an organized march behind the three SOLDIER generals.

In his haste to try to run from conversation with his friends, to run away from his embarrassment, Sephiroth found himself arriving at the meeting venue much too early and regrettably stuck in a room with the upper brass of Shinra. Palmer, the head of the space program, was "extremely pleased that Sephiroth was showing his support for Palmer's vision with his attendance. The plans for the future were ambitious and limitless." Sephiroth nodded mindlessly. "Whoever said the 'the sky's the limit' obviously didn't understand the power and reach of Shinra Electric Power Company," Palmer said, boisterously.

Sephiroth stood dully as the people in front of him rotated. One after another, Shinra executives came around to try to win Sephiroth's favour for their upcoming ambitions and projects. Scarlet was now standing before him, telling him of her need to increase her team's R&D budget. "You have so much sway with the President, Sephiroth," she purred. "If you could just mention to him how much value you'd find in a mako canon…" Scarlet flipped her hair, wafting her perfume toward him. "Well let's just say… I am very open to making it worth your while."

She leaned in close, propositioning him. "I hear you're into blondes."

Sephiroth was plucked right out of mind numbing boredom and dumped straight into body freezing panic. "What?" he whispered harshly, demanding what she meant. He desperately willed away any trace of Cloud from his thoughts, irrationally worried that Scarlet could look into his eyes and see into his mind.

"General," she cooed softly, "we've all heard the rumours that you spent ten straight days in Rufus' suite without coming up for air."

"I…" he said dumbly, not even knowing where to begin to dispel that misunderstanding. What in the world…? It was a mission? There were assassination attempts? 

She took that as confirmation and smirked. "See you in Midgar, General. You know where to find me if you have another ten days free up in your calendar."

Sephiroth was still at a loss for words when Scarlet took off and the ugly mug of Heidegger replaced her. He spotted his friends in different corners of the room, suffering the same fate as him.

There was a boring meeting. Following that, Sephiroth was escorted to a seat on a stage. This was the real reason why he was summoned here–so he could be videotaped sitting near the podium as Palmer made a public announcement about the planned rehabilitation of the town's namesake rocket ship.

A crowd of townsfolk had gathered to watch the announcement live. Sephiroth glanced around, noting the rolling cameras and photographers. To one side, he recognized his platoon of troops standing in parade rest. His eyes scanned the group, unwilling to admit to himself what–or who–he was looking for. Nobody in the audience sported yellow hair standing defiant to gravity. 

He pursed his lips, realizing that he had no idea where Cloud could be. Sephiroth had left in a hurry and had been actively pushing Cloud from his mind ever since this morning's horrible incident, that he hadn't thought to tell Cloud the departure time. The platoon would be leaving for North Coral in a few hours. Would he be able to find Cloud before then? The thought suddenly occurred to him that Cloud might not be planning to travel North Corel with them. Sephiroth recalled Cloud saying he would travel with the group to Rocket Town, nothing further. Could this be it then? Would this be the last Sephiroth would ever see of him?

Sephiroth didn't realize his mental turmoil had physically manifested until he felt a sharp kick from Genesis to his chair. He was jarred from his thoughts and realized he had been gradually crushing the skinny metal armrests of his chair in his grip. He gingerly released his hold on the chair, hoping the squeezed sections imprinted with the shapes of his fingers wouldn't show up in any photographs.

The moment the cameras stopped rolling, Sephiroth was out of his chair. He excused himself. His friends, satisfied to see he was alive and well in person, simply nodded and promised to see him in Midgar.

Sephiroth checked his PHS. Just about an hour before the scheduled departure from Rocket Town and Cloud was nowhere in sight. Sephiroth sped off to the last place he had seen the blond, at the car park. The trucks were empty except for two bewildered drivers watching Sephiroth rush about.

Sephiroth tried searching in the heart of the town, where a tall rocket ship stood proudly in the centre. There were many tourists around, but none were Cloud.

He arrived at the marketplace and checked the inn first. No one was checked in with that name, and he had half a mind to knock on all doors to verify, but he looked at the clock again and realized he was nearly out of time. He stepped back out into the street just as Cloud exited a shop across the street. The sun hit Cloud just right and Sephiroth thought he hadn't seen anything quite so exquisite in his life. Cloud spotted him and nodded casually in greeting. Sephiroth gave a jerk of his neck back in response, hoping he also looked casual.

"I lost track of time and nearly missed departure! Glad to see you're still out and about," Cloud said as he met Sephiroth halfway across the street. "I'm pretty sure Maxwell can't get mad at me for being late if I manage to get there before the big boss."

Sephiroth walked slowly now with Cloud by his side. "Got some shopping done?"

"Yeah the guys were nice enough to chip in and spot me some gil for motion sickness pills." Cloud fished a small bottle out of his pocket and started fidgeting with it to open the seal. "I should probably take one now."

"I saw you coming out of the weapon shop," Sephiroth said. "Buy anything else that I should know about?"

"No," Cloud replied. "You're welcome to give me a pat down if you don't believe me."

Sephiroth really thought he should, but feared that the physical contact would be more fuel for nightmares. He shook his head and changed the topic. "If it makes you any safer, Corporal Fergus has been put on a transport back to Midgar for discipline."

Cloud nodded and inspected his fist and arm. "I don't really want him dead, and anyhow, I've recovered just fine."

"I can see that," Sephiroth said. "But I also know that even after the scars on the body heal, sometimes, the injury to the self takes longer to mend. Sometimes the hurt never goes away."

Cloud craned his head up to look at him, inquisitive.

Sephiroth didn't say more as they approached the car park. The troops were finishing loading replenished supplies and were climbing into the trucks.

"Here buddy, saved you a seat!" said Maxwell, waving Cloud over. Sephiroth followed and climbed into the seat next to Cloud. If he was ever to be asked he would say he didn't feel like being stuck in the other truck again with a bunch of guys that didn't brush their teeth.

\--

Cloud wondered if he was meant to heal Sephiroth's invisible scars to change the course of history.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: more imaginary sex.

Cloud fared much better on the ride out of Rocket Town. The motion sickness pills seemed to have worked like magic. Now that he didn't have to spend an entire car ride trying to keep his stomach contents in his stomach, Cloud's attention drifted. Sephiroth spent the ride wishing to know what the other man was thinking about.

Sephiroth's wish came true after they set up camp a few kilometres from North Corel. There had been reports of fierce monsters appearing at random on this stretch of road, and their mission was to observe and dispatch monsters from this location for three days and report their findings. Several large tents were erected and the troops shared six to a tent, with the exception of the General who was entitled to a tent on his own.

"You should stay with me," Sephiroth had said to Cloud once the tents were set up. "Even if I believe you didn't buy anything dangerous from that weapon shop, I'm not willing to bet the lives of my men on that. You'll stay where I can keep an eye on you."

Cloud followed Sephiroth into the private tent and sighed. "I wish. Believe me, I would've bought it if I had the gil. I haven't been able to stop thinking about this beauty of a sword I saw in Rocket Town."

"Oh?" Sephiroth sat down next to Cloud and the small heater they had going. He was always up for a conversation about swords. It was the one topic he could speak tirelessly on.

"It was beautiful," Cloud said with dramatic excitement. "Double-forged steel, masterfully honed edge. They said it was made by a Wutaian master and only 4600 gil."

Sephiroth considered those details. "Probably a fake. A sword forged by a Wutaian master would be quite rare, and I doubt it would find itself in a Rocket Town shop. And not for paltry 4600 gil."

"You think? It was beautiful though," Cloud mumbled, sounding slightly love drunk. "I guess it's a good thing I don't have a single gil to my name. Otherwise I may have already been swindled by a fake sword." Cloud sighed and looked slightly deflated.

"...Would you like to know how to tell a genuine one from the fakes? In case you ever come across another one?" Sephiroth offered and was pleased when Cloud perked up with interest. "Real ones," he explained, "like my sword, are always etched with the name of the master who crafted it on the blade itself. The Wutaian characters are very intricate, requiring great skill to etch such fine detail on the steel. The fakes often forge the name on the grip or the pommel where the leather is much easier to work with."

"Your sword was forged by a Wutaian master?" Cloud asked.

Sephiroth smirked. "Only by the best blacksmith of this millennium. Double carbon steel and made strong enough to last several lifetimes."

"Can I see?" Cloud asked sitting up on his heels. Sephiroth hesitated to consider the request. His sword was his most prized possession, his truest friend that had been by his side for a million battles. But the breathless look of anticipation on Cloud's face made it hard for Sephiroth to let him down. Sephiroth picked up the sheathed sword he had rested next to him and held it out for Cloud.

Cloud took it carefully in both hands, feeling the surprising weight of the sword. He inspected the detailed hilt with interest before grasping the handle in one hand and slowly sliding the scabbard off with the other. Cloud turned the sword this way and that, admiring the way the light gleamed off the well polished blade. A bit of light caught on a small spot of irregularity on the otherwise smooth blade, and Cloud looked closer to inspect the master's signature. "Can I touch it?" he asked politely, not quite sure of the appropriate protocol but recognizing the importance in the item that Sephiroth was sharing with him. Sephiroth nodded his consent before Cloud reached out to stroke the broad of the blade with his fingertips. Cloud felt the intricate details of the etched name under his fingerpads, the edges of the complex characters cut masterfully in a careful gradient that there were no sharp edges that could catch on his skin. "Seph, it's magnificent," Cloud murmured. He angled the blade to carefully test the edge with a finger but somehow still managed to nick himself on the razor thin cutting edge. "Yeowch," he laughed in embarrassment, popping the injured fingertip into his mouth and sucking on it. "That is sharp!"

Sephiroth saw as Cloud pulled the finger from his mouth a pink tongue darted out quickly for one last lick, tasting to see if the finger was still bleeding or if the mako had already healed the small cut.

Even though the leather was well worn to mold to a hand that was different than his, Cloud enjoyed the way the hilt on the sword felt worn in and comfortable. The sword was clearly well used and well loved, buffed and polished to a perfect shine. He felt slightly ashamed that all the swords he had ever owned had been sorely neglected as he always opted to buy a new cheap replacement every time one became dull. "I want to save up for a sword. A great one," he said aloud. He would take good care of it, he vowed.

"You might be able to find some suitable options in Midgar," suggested Sephiroth, wondering if he could convince Cloud to travel all the way to Midgar with him.

Cloud smiled widely. "I can't wait!" he exclaimed. Cloud picked up the discarded scabbard to sheath the sword, but Sephiroth could see from the way Cloud waved the sword in clumsy circles to try to fit the tip back into the scabbard that Cloud didn't have the arm span to work with such a long sword. Sephiroth took it back from him and with much longer limbs and plenty of practise, easily slid the sword back into its protective cover. Cloud looked slightly embarrassed but in good humour so Sephiroth let a rare smile show and an even rarer joke pass his lips. "Maybe you should start with a shorter sword," he teased. Cloud laughed.

\--

Sephiroth's unconscious brain was betraying him again. Upon closing his eyes on the first night, his mind was flooded by innocent memories turned perverted. Somehow, a lightly-clothed Cloud looked even more tempting than his bare chested form in Icicle cave. The t-shirt made of thin material was well worn and well washed over years, losing all of its original structure. The fabric loosely covered the body underneath it but flowed to accentuate too many details when Cloud moved this way and that. When Cloud laid down on his bed roll, Sephiroth could see every contour underneath, and when he rolled over to sleep on his slide, the fabric melted into the shape of his back, shoulder and waist.

In his dreams, Sephiroth tore off the offending scrap of clothing, shredding it in his bare hands. Thoughts appeared of Cloud's pink tongue flicking out to lick a bleeding finger, no, make that Sephiroth's finger, no, make that the tip of Sephiroth's member. Sephiroth dreamt of that pink tongue tracing light circles around the tip of his dick, driving him crazy. "Seph, it's magnificent," Cloud's breathless voice echoed in his mind. Cloud tested the size and weight of Sephiroth's member in both hands. "Can I touch it?" he asked, already tracing his fingertips lightly up and down his length.

Sephiroth dreamt of sex with Cloud under bright sunshine, the light illuminating Cloud's beautiful face, colouring his hair even more brightly. Sephiroth gazed down on Cloud's face, thinking he looked exquisite, and traced his eyes down a curved neck to the tops of collarbones peeking out over a tatty grey t-shirt. Wait, didn't he already get rid of that offensive shirt?

\--

Sephiroth was brought back to the waking world in a flurry of confusion and arousal. He registered the form of Cloud sleeping soundly across from him. He was angry, he was pent up, he was denied a satisfactory ending and had nowhere to retreat to for a moment of privacy. He couldn't fall back asleep and every time he closed his eyes he was supplied with more lewd imagery. Sephiroth spent the rest of the night staring angrily at the back of Cloud's shirt, willing his arousal to die down.

By the morning he was no longer horny and angry. Just angry. Angry with Cloud, angry with himself, and angry with that damned shirt. "Where did you get that ugly shirt?" was the first thing he asked Cloud in the morning.

"Victor let me borrow it," Cloud replied.

Who the fuck was Victor?!

He made it a mission for the rest of the day once he had pinpointed Corporal Victor Marsh to make his life a living hell. Victor was worn out by the end of that day, having narrowly escaped death when he was ordered to dispatch a formidable monster alone. Victor slept well that night, exhausted from a day of hard work.

Sephiroth did not sleep well.

By the second day, Sephiroth was moodier than ever. Even Lieutenant Maxwell, who was used to Sephiroth's worser moods, felt something was off. When he dared to ask his general "if he was okay", Sephiroth nearly set fire to him and only barely contained himself by reminding himself that Maxwell was one of the least incompetent infantry men the Shinra army had. Sephiroth was not okay. His brain had been hijacked by a blond little sex nymph who must be using some form of black magic on him. Maxwell, seeming to sense how close he was to death, avoided Sephiroth for the rest of the day.

Cloud, unfortunately, did not have the luxury of avoiding Sephiroth. As he got comfortable in his bed roll that night, he felt Sephiroth glaring murder into his back. Cloud was about to peek over his shoulder to check but paused at Sephiroth's sharp bark. "Not another twitch out of you! No more shady movements or I will put an end to you immediately!"

Cloud, feeling this was not the hill he wanted to die on, didn't argue back and obliged, holding frozen still.

They both spent that night sleepless, with Sephiroth glaring into Cloud's back and Cloud unable to sleep in the company of such a murderous presence.

By the third and final day, Sephiroth had nearly come unravelled. He single-handedly destroyed a group of monsters, letting them suffer the wrath of his Firaga that Maxwell was spared of.

Never being one to leave a mission unfinished, Sephiroth dutifully stayed for the three whole days, but as soon as the last hour struck, he commanded the entire troop onto the trucks and ordered the drivers to "take them to North Corel town, _now_!" The trucks rattled away down the road, leaving behind even the tents that the platoon didn't have the chance to disassemble and pack.

\--

Sephiroth locked himself into a single room at North Corel. He dumped his gear on the floor and propped his sword up against the wall. Finally, alone, he stripped off his clothes and sunk into a nearby chair. The past three days seemed to have stripped him of his ability to think straight and turned him into a tightly wound bundle of basest primal needs.

He wasted no time and grasped his member already standing at full attention, giving it the touch it desperately needed. What he did in that shower had been shameful, but at least afterwards he was finally able to think and function normally again. Sephiroth didn't hesitate to close his eyes and give into the thoughts that had been chasing his dreams.

Sephiroth imagined gripping a gloved hand in Cloud's hair. _What are you doing to me, you little minx?_ he growled accusingly. Cloud looked up from between his legs wordlessly but that surly expression, the eyes staring steadily up at him with calm confidence, almost in defiance, taunted Sephiroth.

Sephiroth gripped the hair harder, hard enough it should hurt, but Cloud just calmly wrapped his mouth around Sephiroth's dick and moved with steady suction.

Sephiroth sighed, stroking himself in time with Cloud's imaginary pace.

He liked the contrast of the light hair against his black glove, but he liked the idea more of touching those fine strands. He blinked and the glove was off. In his mind's eye, he could see his bare hand raking through that blond hair. How would it feel? he wondered. The desire to know how that hair might feel against his skin, how that body would feel under his touch, consumed him. He needed to know. Sephiroth pumped himself faster.

Sephiroth looked down, imagining how it would look. Those lips often downturned into a frown stretched over the girth of his dick, moving up and down his thickness. Sephiroth changed his pace and Cloud changed with him. Sephiroth touched himself around the tip, running a thumb over the sensitive top and threw his head back in pleasurable agony as Cloud licked him there. _Gods, Cloud, you little tease._ Sephiroth mouthed the name silently, and let out a guttural groan. He looked down at blue eyes looking straight back at him. They were twinkling with mirth, the laugh bubbling from Cloud's chest only silenced by the fullness in his mouth.

Cloud needed to be taught a lesson, he thought. Damn him for being so calm and cool when he was driving Sephiroth crazy. The image shifted. Cloud was on his back and Sephiroth leaned above him. Spread out beneath him, Cloud was so beautiful and erotic. Sephiroth moved his hips and Cloud craned his head back against soft sheets, lips parted in a silent moan of pleasure.

Sephiroth's wild imagination filled in many details, picturing the way Cloud's eyes would flutter and squeeze tightly shut, to the way his body would writhe and arch under Sephiroth's manipulation. But Sephiroth couldn't begin to imagine what Cloud would sound like in bed. In his erotic fantasies, he could see the words Cloud said but the sound was always muted. Sephiroth hadn't collected enough relevant sound bytes in the day for his imagination to twist and distort.

Sephiroth splayed his hand over the flat of Cloud's stomach, hand nearly covering the entire surface of Cloud's belly. As he rammed himself in again and again, he could feel the firmness of that torso under his touch, an unspoken strength reverberating beneath the surface of the body taking every inch Sephiroth could give. Sephiroth was slamming himself into that small body.

Sephiroth's hips snapped forward, fucking the tight ring his own hand formed.

Cloud's eyes were dark and delirious with desire and Sephiroth felt vindication to finally give Cloud a small taste of the insanity he had endured over the past three days.

Cloud begged him. Sephiroth could see his lips form the words, soundlessly shouting at him to _please, fuck me harder, Seph, please_.

_Fuck! Yes, I'm going to give it to you_ , he imagined replying.

He realized he was close to the edge, he was close to cumming. He closed his eyes, imagining the way Cloud would look, body tensed in his release, shouting his climax before Sephiroth was blinded by his own climax. His hips rocked involuntarily with the rhythm of his shooting cum.

He was panting, coming down from his high. He ran his hands through his pearlescent cum that had landed on his skin and treated himself to one last thought of Cloud. He imagined smearing his cum across the span of Cloud's stomach, the pleasing sound of Cloud's laughter playing through his mind. _That was fucking amazing, Seph,_ Cloud would say.


	6. Chapter 6

The inhabitants of North Corel either quickly retreated into their crude dwellings or glared with hostility as he passed. The people here either feared Shinra, having witnessed firsthand the devastation the company brought down upon those who opposed them, or hated Shinra for the deaths of their friends and family in the destruction of the old Corel Town. All of the inhabitants of the original town fled north when Shinra troops marched in with guns blazing, decimating the members of AVALANCHE and any townsfolk that attempted to shelter the terrorists.

Sephiroth strolled through the dusty streets to pass the time. Sephiroth would not be getting involved in the work to be completed here in North Corel, which was being carried out by the infantrymen, leaving Sephiroth’s days wide open until the platoon’s mission was complete. He spent some time scanning the streets for any remaining traces of terrorist activity and visited some business establishments to spot check for criminal activity. All-in-all, an uneventful day.

As the sun began to set, Sephiroth returned to the inn where he bumped into Cloud. He hadn’t seen the blond since they first arrived here. In fact, he got the sense that Cloud and all the other men had been purposefully avoiding him. No one wanted to find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time, in the path of Sephiroth’s rage and temper. 

Cloud spotted Sephiroth too late. His eyes darted toward the door but realizing it would be too conspicuous to break out in a mad sprint to exit the room, Cloud decided to stand his ground as Sephiroth approached. “How’s it going…?” Cloud asked with an arm raised to nervously scratch the back of his head.

Unlike him, Cloud, Sephiroth observed, looked like he had a very eventful day. Bits of blood and gore stuck to his hair, and dirt was smudged across the bridge of his nose. There was no lasting sign of injury but the side of Cloud’s dark ribbed turtleneck shirt was stained darker with a wetness and told a different story. Sephiroth could smell blood. And something else foul. “Gods, what is that stench?” Sephiroth asked.

“You might be smelling rotting Sea Worm parts,” Cloud said, indicating a large canvas sack by his feet, green-purple liquid oozing from the bottom corners.

Sephiroth picked a Cactuer needle sticking out from Cloud’s hair. “Have you been out battling monsters the entire day?” Sephiroth had wondered where the blond was all day, not having seen him around town.

Cloud batted Sephiroth’s hand away from his face, uncomfortable with the sudden invasion into his personal space. “Yeah, I was serious about earning some gil for a sword!” At Sephiroth’s blank stare, he elaborated, “I’m guessing regular Shinra paycheques mean you’ve never had the pleasure of stripping monsters down for gil… Well, Sea Worm parts yield some of the most premium rates on the market and I heard there was a nest of them just east of town.”

The gruff innkeeper who was just coming out from the back to check in new guests noticed the mess Cloud had made on the floor. “Hey, boy!” he shouted. “Get that muck off my floors or I will come over there and tear you a new one!”

Cloud quickly picked the bag up off the floor and slung it over his shoulder. “Yeah, sorry boss,” he apologized. “Anyway, I’m due to meet an interested buyer in an hour and I’ve still got to get these cleaned off so… see you later?” Cloud said, shifting his weight from foot-to-foot, anxious to get going.

“...See you later,” Sephiroth replied.

Cloud bustled out of his room a short while after having quickly cleaned himself and the monster parts off and was surprised to find Sephiroth standing in the hallway waiting for him.

At Cloud’s look of surprise Sephiroth realized much too late that when Cloud had said “see you later” and told Sephiroth of his plans that he hadn’t actually been making those plans _with_ Sephiroth. 

“I…” Sephiroth searched for a way to escape this embarrassing situation.

Cloud recovered quickly. “Ready to see a master of negotiation at work? Let’s mosey,” he said, cocking his head at Sephiroth in a clear invitation this time.

Sephiroth followed Cloud down some very obscure back streets of North Corel and stopped in front of a broken down eighteen wheeler truck parked off to the side of the dirt path. “I think this is it,” Cloud said, rounding to the back of the truck where the metal door was rolled up. They both peered into the dark cargo area. With mako-enhanced vision, they could see boxes and shelves down the entire length of the truck but didn’t spot the shop owner. “Hello?” Cloud called out.

“Back here,” came a gruff voice at the end of the cargo hold. Cloud climbed in without further hesitation and made his way across the length of the truck. Sephiroth unenthusiastically walked in after Cloud, wrinkling his nose at the off putting smells emanating from various boxes and shelves. It turns out there was a separate room at the back of the truck. The owner had fused together the tractor and trailer parts of the defunct truck, and a sheet hanging from the ceiling separated the cargo area from the driver seat area, which had been repurposed into a seedy living area.

Cloud walked around the cloth curtain. The shop owner made a lecherous sound of interest upon seeing the blond. When Sephiroth appeared next to the blond, the shop owner glowered. “Screw off. I don’t do business with Shinra,” he slurred. Sephiroth thought he looked like a junked-up sleazebag. There were bottles of narcotics littered about him.

“I’m not Shinra,” Cloud replied.

“What’s he doing here, then?” the shop owner nodded toward Sephiroth.

“Policing to make sure you give me a fair price,” Cloud replied and got down to business. “I can’t imagine you have an abundance of Sea Worm parts. Not too many people can take down one and live to tell the tale. Not to mention, ten.” Cloud placed the heavy sack on the small table between them.

The man eyed the bag with hazy eyes. Finally he offered, “ten for the teeth, fifty for a tail, and one hundred for any dragon scales you managed to pick up.”

Cloud barked out a sharp laugh. “Fifty per tooth, five hundred per tail, and one thousand per dragon scale. I’ve got ten of them.”

The shopkeeper licked his teeth, and grinned. “Alright, Lone Wolf,” he slurred loudly, using the fake name Cloud had given to set up this meeting. “I see you’ve done your homework. I’ll pay you that if it comes with _service_ ,” he leered.

“They’ve been cleaned,” Cloud said, reaching into the bag and throwing one of the cleaned Sea Worm tails into the shop owner’s lap.

“You don’t get it… not that kind of service,” the shopkeeper said. “Let me give you a hint,” he said, standing slowly and teetering around the table. “Let me see you suck on this,” he said breathily, waving the tip of the Sea Worm tail in Cloud’s face.

Cloud crossed his arms and leaned his face back from the proffered appendage.

“I’m warning you…” Sephiroth spoke in a low warning, preparing to step in.

Cloud waved a hand in a nonchalant manner. “Don’t worry Sephiroth. I doubt this vile man is dumb enough to piss off a guy that dispatched ten Sea Worms in one afternoon. I politely decline your proposition,” he said calmly to the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper too stoned to take no for an answer roared and made a grab for Cloud. Sephiroth fumbled, unable to draw his sword in the tight space, but before he could even react, Cloud had already sent the man flying back into his seat with one firm kick. Sephiroth saw Cloud reach into his lifted boot for the concealed knife, and in one swift movement, the blade was sent soaring through the air after the man, landing squarely in the seat between the man’s legs. The knife wobbled precariously close to the shopkeeper’s junk.

Cloud stalked slowly around the table and leaned over the man and wrapped his hand around the hilt of the impaled knife. The man, shocked out of his drunken stupor, opened and closed his mouth wordlessly.

“I think,” Cloud said, hand very close to the man’s private parts, but certainly not in the way the shopkeeper had hoped, “the words you are searching for are _Sorry_ and _Here’s an extra ten thousand gil for your troubles_.” The man nodded frantically. Cloud stood and yanked the short blade from the cushioned seat seat, and the shopkeeper scrambled with shaking legs to retrieve the gil owed to the blond.

Once satisfied he had received full payment, Cloud turned to leave but then paused to throw a parting adieu to the shopkeeper over his shoulder. “I really hope you found my _service_ to be quite… exceptional,” he said in a deliberate taunt. And then he strutted out of the grimey trailer truck with a sack full of coin.

It was completely dark out by the time Sephiroth and Cloud turned back onto the main streets of North Corel. The townsfolk had retired for the night and the streets were quiet as they strolled down the path toward the inn. Cloud’s cocky facade dissipated and he turned to Sephiroth with an exuberant grin. “Not bad in a day’s work, huh? I told you I’m a master of negotiation,” he boasted.

Sephiroth smiled. “I believe my presence was for some sort of policing purposes? I can’t say that I found your negotiation tactics entirely legal.”

“Well… Can this policeman be bribed?” Cloud asked, cheekily. Sephiroth could think of some ways he could easily be bribed but smartly kept his racy thoughts to himself having just witnessed how much Cloud appreciated unsolicited come-ons. Cloud continued, “I think I’ve got an extra ten thousand gil I could put towards said bribery. Let’s go do something fun!”

“Now?” asked Sephiroth, looking around. “I don’t think anything’s open now.”

Cloud pondered for a moment and then gained a mischievous twinkle in his eye. That’s how Sephiroth found himself at Gold Saucer a few hours later.

It was quite late in the evening already by the time they arrived in Gold Saucer, but the amusement park was a place that was always bright and lively. It was a place that never closed or slept. Cloud paid a whopping 6000 gil at the door for their admission tickets. “Here you go, sir, your bribe,” Cloud said jokingly as he handed Sephiroth’s ticket over. "Where to first?"

Sephiroth looked up and around at the bright lights and signs pointing everywhere. "I don't know, it's my first time at a place like this."

"Well in that case… let's go around and have some fun and then head over to chocobo racing last. If we're lucky, maybe we can win back all the gil spent!" Cloud approached a series of tubes jutting from the ground and picked one. "Alright, jump!" he directed.

Sephiroth looked appalled at the idea of doing something so undignified as to slide down a rainbow tube, but before he could protest, Cloud hopped into the tube. Sephiroth peered in but Cloud had disappeared around a bend. Next to him, a young couple jumped into a tube labelled "Ghost". The one Cloud disappeared into was labelled "Speed".

There was no telling how far the fall was, but he supposed it must be safe if the general public and Cloud so comfortably used this unconventional way to travel. Sephiroth stepped into the tube and was subjected to a whirl of neon lights whooshing past him before he was ejected from the tube moments later. He landed on his feet but had to come to an abrupt stop to not crash into Cloud who had been about to look into the tube to check for Sephiroth.

"You took so long I was wondering if you got stuck," joked Cloud.

“I was also wondering how I found myself stuck… in this situation,” he replied dryly.

Cloud laughed and Sephiroth was glad Cloud picked up on his humour. "There are worse things than to be stuck on a date with me, you know."

Date? Was this a date?

Cloud saw Sephiroth's smile falter and hurried to correct himself. "Just kidding… Are you upset? Because I’d like to be outside of the blast radius of your Firaga if you are."

"I'm not upset," said Sephiroth. “I was just thinking…”--how he wouldn’t mind if this were a date--“...that this might encourage the nonsensical rumours flying around that apparently blondes are my type.”

“What! Who’s so brazenly spreading these rumours? Don’t they value the head on their shoulders?”

“Scarlet,” Sephiroth replied with a dramatic roll of his eyes. “Head of Weapons Development at Shinra.”

Cloud barked a sharp laugh. “Ha! That blonde floozy… Sounds more like wishful thinking to me! Anyway, let’s get in line for the Shooting Coaster. Last time I was here my partner had abysmal aim and we couldn’t win any prizes. I have high hopes that you’ll fare better than she did.”

Sephiroth smirked, crossing his arms. “Do you bring all your dates here, Cloud? Your recycled ideas won’t work on me.”

“No, that time was most certainly not a date,” Cloud said, shaking his head fervently.

“Not your type?”

“It’s not that. Tifa’s smart, busty, and all the boys in town were enamoured with her. Maybe not your type though--she’s a brunette,” Cloud tried to joke weakly.

“You sound pretty enamoured with her too.” Sephiroth, not usually one to pry, found himself too curious and unable to help himself.

“Like I said, all the boys in town were, but there’s just too much baggage between us for anything to happen. When we were kids she was always too popular and I was always too short and scrawny. And now that I’ve grown… well… anyway, it’s complicated,” Cloud said. He quieted, reminiscing about the last time he rode the Shooting Coaster with Tifa, and how afterwards, they parted ways and he found himself with a different brunette later that night, watching fireworks from a gondola high above the bright lights of Gold Saucer. Beautiful Aeris who had always been kind to Cloud. Aeris, who Cloud would change the course of history to protect.

Sephiroth wondered if he had pried too much and brought back too many painful memories for the blond. He cleared his throat to catch Cloud’s attention and Cloud shook himself out of his thoughts and smiled wryly. Sephiroth wished to improve Cloud’s smile and tried with another joke. “Are you sure you have grown?” he asked, making it a point to look down his nose at Cloud to emphasize just how much height he had over the blond.

“Hey! I am a very respectable average height! And just take a look at these guns,” Cloud joked back, flexing his arms. “I might accidentally slay all the ladies, packing this much firepower. But don’t worry, I’ll leave Scarlet for you.” Sephiroth was glad to see Cloud bounce back so quickly into a jaunty mood. It reminded him vaguely of someone; the face of a newly minted Third Class SOLDIER came to mind, the one Angeal had been mentoring for the better part of a year now.

They reached the front of the line and climbed into the little metal cart in the shape of a rocketship. Sephiroth had a difficult time getting settled into the small seat. “Sorry, my fully grown legs seem to be too long for this children’s ride,” he said to Cloud who grumbled and cursed at him.

The ride ended up being more challenging than Sephiroth anticipated. The spaceship cart barreled down a convoluted track and Sephiroth and Cloud devised a divide-and-conquer strategy to try to shoot down as many targets that whizzed past as possible with the plastic blaster guns anchored to the front of the cart.

At the end, Cloud whooped upon seeing their score and set about selecting a prize, so Sephiroth thought they must have done decently well. “Here!” Cloud approached Sephiroth and whacked him on the shoulder with a plastic toy sword filled with air. The toy squeaked when it made contact with Sephiroth’s shoulder. “I know you were pissed off that I made you leave your sword at the inn, so this should make you feel better.”

Sephiroth took the offensive squeaky toy sword in his hand. Based on the length, shape, and crudely copied detailing of the hilt it looked like--

“A perfect replica of your beautifully crafted Wutaian-forged sword!”


End file.
